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Identifying People by Their Bodies When Faces Are No Help
Every day we recognize friends, family, and co-workers from afar -- even before we can distinctly see a face. New research reveals that when facial features are difficult to make out, we readily use information about someone’s body to identify them -- even when we don’t know we’re doing so. “Psychologists and computer scientists have concentrated almost exclusively on the role of the face in person recognition,” explains lead researcher, Allyson Rice of the University of Texas at Dallas.
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Facebook and Narcissism
The New York Times: A Times article recently debated whether young people are more narcissistic than previous generations, mentioning Facebook as a possible factor. And a University of Michigan study, published in June, seems to support this theory. Are social media like Facebook turning us into narcissists? Read the discussion: The New York Times
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General Psychopathology Factor May Describe Structure of Psychiatric Disorders
Mental disorders have traditionally been viewed as distinct categorical entities, but the high incidence of comorbid, or co-occurring, disorders challenges this view. As researchers Terrie Moffitt, Avshalom Caspi, and colleagues observe in their new article in Clinical Psychological Science, about half of the people who meet diagnostic criteria for one disorder also meet the diagnostic criteria for another disorder at the same time.
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Eye Contact May Make People More Resistant to Persuasion
Making eye contact has long been considered an effective way of drawing a listener in and bringing him or her around to your point of view. But new research shows that eye contact may actually make people more resistant to persuasion, especially when they already disagree. The new findings are published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. “There is a lot of cultural lore about the power of eye contact as an influence tool,” says lead researcher Frances Chen, who conducted the studies at the University of Freiburg, Germany, and is now an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia.
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Recognizing 125 Years of Psychological Research Excellence
Tucked away in a corner of the Philosophy Department, Indiana University’s first psychology laboratory opened in 1888 with humble beginnings. But 125 years later, it now stands as the longest continuing psychology laboratory in the United States. Emphasizing a collaborative and interdisciplinary focus from the start, the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences (PBS) as a whole now stands as a prime example of cutting-edge and multi-faceted research. "The Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences has an enormous worldwide impact," said Lauren Robel, Indiana University Bloomington Provost and Executive Vice President.
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The Mental Strain of Making Do With Less
The New York Times: Diets don’t just reduce weight, they can reduce mental capacity. In other words, dieting can make you dumber. Understanding why this is the case can illuminate a range of experiences, including something as far removed from voluntary calorie restriction as the ordeal of outright poverty. Imagine that you are attending a late-afternoon meeting. Someone brings in a plate of cookies and places them on the other side of the conference table. Ten minutes later you realize you’ve processed only half of what has been said. Why? Only half of your mind was in the meeting. The other half was with the cookies: “Should I have one? I worked out yesterday. I deserve it.